Passionate European Love
by Ebb
Summary: When Derek and Casey end up having to take their postgraduation trip across Europe together, sparks fly.
1. To Go or Not to Go?

Casey stared straight ahead in the darkness at a spot on the ceiling directly above her, looking extremely aggravated. There was a thump against the other side of her wall, followed by a little giggle. She had half a mind to run into the next room and give them a piece of her mind, but decided to take the higher road and wait it out. After all, these things usually didn't go on for longer than twenty minutes. And she was right. Soon enough, there were some muffled cries accompanied by various moans and groans. Casey couldn't believe that nobody else could hear this, but had to admit that it was clever of him to take the bedroom all the way at the end of the hall, knowing Casey would take the next biggest one, the one next to his, and, even if she heard anything, she wouldn't do something as low as telling. Another bump hit the other side of the wall, followed by a drawn out moan. Casey could imagine her. There was no way of telling who exactly it would be this time, but she would be blond, probably a cheerleader, lying under him with eyes half closed and grabbing Casey's stepbrother as though for dear life. He would get quite a kick out of it too. Another bump against the wall, and then there was silence. But Casey knew better than to try to sleep now. Several minutes later, there was a giggle, then some stumbling around as whoever it was tried to put her clothes on in the dark (if she bothered taking them off, that is) and then some light thumps as she tried to make her way down the stairs without turning on any lights. Finally, there was the sound of an engine starting outside, then the sound of tires against smooth asphalt as she rolled out of sight. Disgusting. And this happened every night, sometimes more than once. That is, assuming Derek came home at all. Finally, there was silence. Casey rolled over onto her side, still cross, anger bubbling away inside her, pushing peaceful sleep away. Finally, she decided to go downstairs for a drink of water. She stepped out of her room and glanced casually at her brother's door. To her horror, it was open and Derek was sleeping in his boxers, his hair and sheets a mess, faint traces of pink lip gloss smeared all over his chin and around his mouth illuminated by the small light on his bedside table. Trying not to think about what just happened in that room, Casey turned around and ran downstairs.

The icy water ran down her throat. It was how she always drank it; cold water from the fridge filled up two thirds of the way in a tall clear glass with four ice cubes. She didn't need this. Not the day before her math and English finals. She'd studied until her brain was full to bursting, but the stress was eating away at her anyway. She needed sleep. It may have been only two days until graduation, but Casey was not about to fail anything, despite how little it would mean even if she did.

_The next day_

"Oh my god, Emily, you cannot be serious!" Casey said for the fourth time in the conversation as she dropped into the purple armchair in her room.

"I am so sorry, Case, you've got to believe me. But my dad called last minute and I barely ever see him. I can't miss this opportunity to bond with him." Emily said into the phone.

Casey sighed. She knew it was true. "Yeah, I know, Em, I totally understand. Besides, it's Greece. You'll have a great time."

"I just feel so bad I mean you planned out every last detail of this trip. All the reservations are for two people. Is there anyone else you can take?"

"I don't know." Casey said as she got back up and resumed pacing. "I don't want to go with anybody but you."

"I'm so sorry. I just couldn't pass this up. Of course I was totally looking forward to going with you and I was crushed that the only time my dad could go was in the month following graduation, but this is my dad. I barely even know him." Emily replied. Truth and pain seeped through her tone.

"No, I really do get it." Casey sighed and flung herself down onto her bed. "All the reservations are made. I have to find somebody. Maybe I could go with my mom…"

"Come on Casey this is your graduation trip. Don't spend it with your mom…how about…" She paused hesitantly. "Derek?"

Casey's eyes widened at the thought. "Are you serious? How could you even suggest that?!" Casey said in disbelief.

"Look, I know you guys' past and everything, but he was probably crushed after your parents refused to let him go anywhere. This could bring you guys closer."

"Emily, this was supposed to be fun. How would I enjoy it with _him _there?" Casey retorted.

"I'm sorry, Case, but I don't see what choice you have."

Casey knocked on Derek's door. She couldn't believe she was doing this. It took a minute, but finally the door opened a crack to reveal an extremely annoyed-looking Derek in his boxers and a white t-shirt. It was eleven o-clock in the morning and Derek was probably awoken only minutes ago by Casey's persistent knocking. Alcohol, late nights out, and sex can cause drowsiness after all. Casey wrinkled her nose upon inhaling a mixture of morning breath, body odor, and liquor.

"What. The. _Fuck. _Do you want?" He asked, scratching his head.

"God, Derek put some clothes on. I have to talk to you." Casey said, disgusted. She then shut the door between them and waited to hear the scratching of opening drawers or dirty laundry being turned right-side-out to be re-worn. Instead, all she heard was the creaking of bedsprings as Derek went back to bed.

She slammed her palm against the painted wood loudly. "Derek! _Now_!" She yelled.

It was several minutes before she heard any signs of movement, but finally the door opened fully to expose a sweatpants-and-t-shirt clad Derek, his hair still a mess and his eyes still full of sleep. His breath hadn't improved, either.

"Yesterday." Casey began as she took a big, reassuring breath. "Emily said she can't go on our trip across Europe."

"Boo-hoo." Derek said, smirking. "Get out."

"Let me finish." Casey continued, annoyed. "I was thinking" Here she took another deep breath, "you would go with me…?"

Derek sneered at her. "Look. Just because mom and dad canceled my trip to Cancun with people I actually _like_, doesn't mean I need your pity, or your stupid, museum-filled, planned-to-the-last-second trip."

Casey glared at him for several minutes, unable to believe that he would spurn her kindness like that.

"Ok," She finally mustered. "Listen. First, Europe is filled with some of the most beautiful museums that the world holds dear." Derek rolled his eyes but Casey continued as though she hadn't noticed. "Second, it had to be planned out or we wouldn't have anything to keep us on schedule, instead of getting lost somewhere in the middle of Spain!"

Derek tried to shut the door in her face but Casey slammed her palm onto it to stop him.

"Third," she continued "Europe is home to some of the most beautiful beaches in the world." Casey paused, as though summoning the strength to say the next few words. "With gorgeous girls, and there are plenty of topless beaches there, too." She felt disgusted for what she was saying.

Derek looked at her for several minutes as though thinking hard about something. "Well, I would go…ok, here's the thing. I'll come along on your little educational expedition, but I am not going to tag along to be your little museum buddy. I will go wherever I want, whenever I want. We will take flights and/or trains together and possibly sleep in the same hotel room once in a while. Otherwise, you stay out of my way, I stay out of yours.

"Derek, all the hotel rooms are for two people; you're not getting your own room."

Derek smirked at her stupidity. "I'll figure out what to do with myself at night, Case." He said. And with that, he slammed the door in her face again, this time having it close and lock before she could catch it.


	2. Ibiza and Madrid

Casey was sound asleep. It was a great day spent in Ibiza, Spain; after a quick stop at a nice, tame beach, Casey did a little souvenir shopping, followed by a day at Museo Arqueològic de Dalt Vila and Museo Arte Contemporáneo. When she got home, she wrote postcards she'd gotten at a local shop to Emily and her family. Finally, she set her alarm for 5:30 the next morning to prepare for their flight to Madrid and went to bed. It was a blissful sleep, dreamless but deep. Suddenly, there was a loud thud on the other side of the door. Casey jumped awake and listened carefully. It came again.

Finally, she heard a familiar voice "Cathey! Open up, it'th Derek!" His words were slurred but there was still no mistaking his voice. Casey rolled her eyes, her heart still hammering, before she got up to open the door.

The first thing she noticed was an awful smell of alcohol that hit her like a wave as she opened the door. The second was that he was wet, in swim shorts and a t-shirt, with sand in his hair. He was leaning against the door to steady himself, a girl with bleach blond hair in a gold bikini top, micro-miniskirt, and stripper heels by his side. She was also drunk, barely balanced on her shoes.

"Hi." Derek started stupidly.

"Derek! What the hell?!" Casey yelled, though it didn't do any good.

"Hey, Cath," He said, grinning like an idiot, pushing past her and collapsing on his bed, motioning for the girl to follow. She tried, but Casey put her arm out to block her from getting through the door.

"Derek, you are _not _having sex in this room." She screamed.

"Aw, come on Casey loosen up. Just go to the lobby for like, half an hour." He said, not moving from his bed. Finally, when he realized she wasn't going for it, he got up. "Fine, we'll finish on the beach, come on, whatever-your-name-is."

"DEREK! You are NOT leaving!" She turned to the girl. "Where are you staying?" She asked sternly.

"I dunno." Her eyes were drooping as though she was about to fall asleep. "Bathroom?" She asked.

Casey led her to the restroom, where the girl threw up heavily. When she came out, she blurted out the name of her hotel. Casey called a cab for her and sent her off. When she returned upstairs, Derek was already asleep.

"You moron." She murmured as she climbed back into bed.

"I love you too, Casey." Derek mumbled softly before he started snoring softly.

The crisp sound of Casey's alarm seemed to light the whole world on fire as it tore Casey's eyes open. She jumped out of bed and turned the thing off. She only remembered what happened the night before when she looked over at Derek, still in damp swim trunks and shirt, his pillow curled around the back of his head and held over his ear to keep out the intrusive alarm. Casey took a pillow from her bed and violently threw it at him before storming off into the bathroom to shower.

By the time she came out, Derek was sitting on the edge of his bed, his eyes squinting against the light coming in from the windows.

"Go take a shower, Derek. We're leaving in half an hour." Casey said coolly. She had no more patience for him. To her surprise, Derek got up and started waddling over the bathroom. When he was about to pass her, he stopped and suddenly pulled the corner of her towel that was tucked under to keep it from falling. It fell to her feet, leaving her totally naked. He didn't even stop to look at her before walking off toward the shower, it was just an evil gesture.

"Asshole!" She yelled after him as the door slammed.

Derek and Casey were sitting next to each other on the plane. Casey tried to switch seats with people but nobody would agree. She was reading a travel guide to Madrid while Derek was watching something stupid with earphones on.

"Look." Derek said as he slipped the headphones off and turned to his stepsister. Casey continued looking down at the travel pamphlet, though he could tell she'd stopped reading. "I'm sorry for whatever I did last night. I don't exactly remember everything, but I know you fixed it. So thanks."

Casey kept looking down for a moment, and then finally turned to face him. Looking at her now, it was the first time Derek noticed how pretty and big those blue eyes of hers were. "You know, to some extent I expected it. You can be a real ass sometimes." Her tone was soft but she didn't wait for a response. Instead, she turned back to the brochure in her lap.

The rest of the trip went by in silence. When they landed and got to the hotel, Derek glanced at his watch.

"I'm going out. Great clubs in Madrid." He finally said.

"Great." Casey replied sarcastically as she plopped down in bed.

"Come on, Case, you can't be going to explore the city now, at…" he glanced at his wristwatch again, "…ten thirty at night. Come with me."

He felt sorry for what he did last night. Casey knew it and didn't want to be thanked by having to baby sit him as he went club hopping and tried to hook her up with random guys. "I'm tired." She replied stiffly.

"Come on, I won't get drunk if you don't want me to." He said as he snapped open the clasps on Casey's suitcase.

"Derek! Get away from my stuff!" Casey said.

"Relax." He replied as he opened her luggage and started rummaging through her clothes. Casey jumped of the bed and ran over the trunk, shutting it as quickly as she could, but it was too late. When she looked up, there was something bright purple in his hands. "Hello." He said as he examined the scrap of fabric. "What have we here?" He straightened it out into a purple sequined mini-dress on thin straps.

Casey turned crimson. "Derek, put it back. That's, um, uh, Emily…yeah, she got it for me." Even to her it sounded like as terrible lie.

"You suck at lying" he said as he stepped back to examine the dress further without her snatching it away. "Put this on. We're going clubbing." He said assertively before marching off into the bedroom.

Casey stood looking at the dress that was left on her bed. It really was a gorgeous dress, but totally not her. She bought it two weeks before they left. It was an impulsive buy, one of the only times she'd even bought something without thinking it through first. She knew she wasn't the clubbing type, but there was something so liberating about the dress, that she bought it anyways. Now, she was almost ready to actually put it on, and not just as lingerie, but _in public, _and in front of Derek. It seemed disgusting, not to mention that Casey didn't like loud parties, but for some reason she slipped it on anyways. It didn't look too bad, Casey had to admit to herself. It hugged her hips and pushed her breasts up to make for very nice cleavage. After putting it on, she couldn't bear the thought of removing it without at least flaunting the way she looked to somebody. After having the risqué dress on, it didn't seem at all unnatural when she went over to her suitcase and slipped on a pair of dark purple suede stilettos. By then, Casey couldn't stop herself from getting her makeup and putting on bright purple glittery eye shadow. Just when she was finishing up, Derek stepped out of the bathroom. Casey couldn't remember the last time he looked so good. His hair was styled with something to make it look very modern and texturized, and he was in a white and green striped button down shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and dockers. It didn't hurt that he smelled amazing, either. They stood for a moment, looking at each other in shock, Casey's heart fluttering for a second though she didn't know why.


	3. Hangover

The large discothèque in the heart of Madrid was packed with over three thousand beautiful people, all radiating heat from dancing and drinking. Casey had never been anywhere so wild in her life. People were screaming and dancing like they had no clothes on. Girls got up on the bar to show everybody what was under their skirts and people were drinking left, right, and center. Spanish music blasted throughout the whole building, inescapable even in the bathrooms. Red and green lazars swiveled around the dance floor, accompanied by large spotlights of different colors, interrupted occasionally by bright strobe lights.

Casey stood by the bar, occasionally elbowed or shoved by people who seemed to be too full of alcohol to care about common courtesy. She couldn't remember the last time she felt so left out of something since moving to live with George and his kids. She looked out over the crowd. It was like a huge black mass, dotted with blue, red, green and yellow where the spotlights hit it. She took a shot of something the bartender kept giving her. She told herself over and over back home that she would never become drunk, for safety reasons, but she was so bored and angry for allowing Derek to drag her to a club that she couldn't help try to order something. The Spanish bartender didn't know much English, though, and she didn't know much Spanish, so eventually he just set the glass down in front of her. Casey drank it down, reveling in the relief it gave her and the burning in her throat. She'd had six already and she hadn't eaten since lunch on the plane but it wasn't affecting her very much. All she felt was an annoying buzz in the back of her mind. By the time Derek emerged from the crowd, Casey's watch read three thirty. In the back of her mind, she couldn't believe she stayed up that late when she had so much to do the next day, but it wasn't bothering her very much.

To Derek's surprise, when she saw him go up to the bar with another blond girl, Casey smiled warmly at him.

"Go dance!" He yelled in her ear over the loud music.

Casey giggled. "I don't like dancing!"

"Just _go_!" Derek said as he pulled her out of her seat. To both their surprise, she struggled to find her balance.

"Derek! Don't push me!" She said.

"I barely even touched you. How much did you drink?" Derek asked, his tone full of surprise with an edge of amusement.

"Not much." Casey said as she tried to walk in her purple suede pumps. She stumbled almost instantly and would have fallen if Derek didn't catch her around the waist, knocking the air out of her. "Derek!!" She started whining like a little child.

"Oh my God. Ok, you've got to go now." Derek said to the concerned-looking girl next to him. When she was gone he turned back to his stepsister. "I seriously can't believe this." He started smugly. Casey just swiveled around on her barstool, a blank expression on her face.

"You know what?" He continued "We can continue this tomorrow morning. It'll have more of an effect then." Casey just made a little gurgling noise with her throat, followed by an eruption of giggles. He then pulled her back up out of the chair, wrapping his arm around her tightly and leading her to the exit. Casey wouldn't stop murmuring nonsense in his ear all the way to the hotel in the cab. When they got home, Derek forced her to take aspirin and vitamin C tablets, and then allowed her to collapse on the bed, fast asleep.

-

Casey felt like her head was being split open. It was throbbing painfully from the moment she woke up. There were little hard nubs pressing into her stomach, and it took her several minutes to realize they were sequins from the dress she'd never taken off, aggravated by her moving against the hotel sheets. She moaned and sat up in bed, her head reeling, spinning, and exploding all at once. She then realized how queasy she felt.

"Oh my God." She moaned as she remembered little bits and pieces of the night before. She didn't really do anything crazy, but could feel her cheeks burn when she thought about how she needed Derek's help. She looked down at the watch still on her wrist, which read two-thirty. She threw her head back against the headboard, sending dozens of needles flying through her head. She looked around, careful not to make any sudden movements with her head. On her nightstand stood a cheap, plastic bucket, the bright orange price tag still stuck to the side. Just thinking about what its use was made her gag. She grabbed the bright blue bucket and coughed into it, but didn't throw up. It was then that Derek came in from the bathroom, the toilet still in mid-flush as the door shut behind him. Casey jerked the blue container away from herself, embarrassed to be caught in such a state. Derek walked over to his bed in the haughtiest manner he could and sat down smugly, looking over at her. She just stared back, trying to warn him not to aggravate her with a hostile expression.

"Well?" Derek asked.

Casey just stared back at him, her hair a mess, her eyeliner smudged, and her dress rotated about ninety degrees from where it should be.

"How's my little alcoholic this morning?"

"Derek," she started warningly.

"No, no Case, it's all right. I just didn't know you had it in you."

"I'm serious. Get out." Casey said through gritted teeth.

Derek just kept his signature smirk on. "Sweet little Casey McDonald, drunk off her ass at some rowdy club in the middle of Madrid. Who knows what might have happened if her honest, virtuous stepbrother didn't stop her from doing something stupid. This is great. Oh, and by the way, my head doesn't hurt the least bit."

"God, Derek. I feel like shit, ok? You have five seconds to get out of here or I will personally beat the crap out of you, got it?"

Derek just laughed, aggravating Casey even more. "Yeah right." He said as he flew back into his pillows. "You won't be able to even get out of bed before six tonight. I can't believe you drank that much on an empty stomach."

Casey just lay back down and tried to ignore him.

"Anyway," He continued. "Here's the Advil, and some drink this. He said as he put something on her nightstand. And eat apples. They're in the mini-fridge." He said as he got up.

Casey looked suspiciously at the yellow-ish liquid in the plastic cup. "Derek, what the hell is this?"

"Banana milkshake with honey and B-vitamins. Helps like crazy." Next thing Casey knew, the door was shutting behind him.


	4. Bed Rest

Five hours later, Casey sat on the bed, her head propped up against pillows and her eyes fixed on the television screen. She'd barely moved since she'd gotten up about three hours ago to shower and change into pajamas. Her head was still throbbing, so she didn't blow dry her hair, leaving it lying in curls around her face and shoulders. She dreaded the moment Derek would arrive home, when she knew she'd have to thank him for taking care of her. She shuddered just at the thought of having to apologize to and thank him, and a visible shiver ran through her body when she heard the doorknob click from somebody opening the door. Derek's tall, overconfident figure appeared almost instantly, twirling the keys to the rental car on his index finger. He threw them onto the table in the room nonchalantly, and then headed to the bathroom without saying a word to Casey. For a few moments, Casey could feel annoyance boiling inside her for being ignored, but forced it down. After all, she couldn't start bickering with Derek if she was going to humble herself. Finally, he emerged, still in his signature leather jacket and purposely messed up hair. He went over to his suitcase and pretended to be looking for something, but Casey knew he was just waiting for his thank you. She attempted to swallow her pride along with the nervous lump in her throat before finally opening her mouth.

"The smoothie thing helped." She started in a small voice. She actually had a whole speech written out in her head, but she couldn't force herself to go through with it.

"Yep, the Spanish sure know how to put fruit in a blender." Derek responded distractedly as he removed a wrinkled blue shirt out from under the mess of clothes in his suitcase, inspecting it as though wondering if it was fit for wearing.

For a split second, Casey realized how well that shirt would go with his hair and eyes. Then she pulled herself back into reality. "Last night, I know you were about to…have…a thing." Casey said uneasily, trying to sound apologetic.

"Yeah…Michelle…or something like that." He said, throwing the shirt on his bed and pulling out a red and brown tie, one that Casey noticed was almost the exact shade of his hair…

"Well, sorry for interrupting." Casey finished, suddenly relieved that it was over.

"I kind of owed you for before, so, whatever." He murmured, obviously more interested in the stain on his tie than in anything Casey had to say. Finally, he plucked some light pants out of the pile, draped them over the back of a chair and plopped down onto his bed.

Casey turned her attention back to the TV, wondering why Derek didn't torture her by asking her to go on, delving into how inconvenient she was. She thought about just letting it go, but decided that she couldn't live with herself unless she told him what was on her mind. She gulped again and turned to Derek.

"When I planned this trip, I didn't plan on—"

"Ugh, just save it Casey." Derek said, not even doing her the favor of tearing his eyes away from the television long enough to glance at her.

Casey decided to let it slip for now, but was still confused as she turned her attention back to whatever was on the Spanish-speaking TV. They stayed like that for several more hours, until Derek finally got up and grabbed the clothes he'd picked out previously. Casey looked at him questioningly, but he ignored it and went straight for the bathroom. Again, Casey couldn't help but notice how good he smelled when he came out. She felt her cheeks get hot, suddenly embarrassed to look so sick and uncoordinated in front of him when he was all dressed up. But _why_?! This was her brother. Why should she care what she looks like in front of him?

"Your hair looks nice curly. I'm going out." Derek said. By the time he finished that second sentence, he was already halfway out the door. Casey could hear it slam not half a second later, sending a rush of pain to her head.

As soon as she found herself alone, Casey's mind started buzzing with questions. Why was Derek being so nice? Why did he compliment her hair, even when she was lying in bed with a huge hangover? And most importantly, why could she still pick the smell of his cologne out of the air? The whole day felt surreal, and not only because Casey could barely remember the night before and she'd never had a hangover before. Things had a strange edge to them that made them unreal, somehow. For example, Derek never gave a crap about her or her hair, and that morning he seemed to have gone out of his way to make her feel better. Maybe it was just the headache that made things seem more significant than they were, but for some reason, _something _was different. The whole day had been so weird that all Casey wanted to do was sleep. She turned off the television and gingerly laid herself down on her pillow. She closed her eyes and tried to turn off her brain, but _Your hair looks nice curly _kept running through her head. She couldn't help but feel like he was messing with her, trying to get her to explode or something.

Frustrated, Casey threw her covers away from her and ignored her head and started pacing with violent speed and determination. She wanted Derek to come home already. Why she wanted that for the first time in her life, she didn't know, but for some reason it felt like having him home would make her feel better. Actually, what she really wanted was him the way he was before. The new, nicer Derek was creeping her out. At least before, there was a consistency to their relationship, and Casey loved consistency and order. After about ten minutes, her head hurt too much to keep walking, so she lay back down.

She stayed in bed, in the dark, unable to sleep for perhaps another hour before the door opened. Casey sat up in bed and turned toward the door expectantly, silently begging for him to not have another drunk, blond girl on his arm. Thankfully, though, he was alone, and seemed to still be in the same state he was in when he left. He caught her eye through the darkness and started at her. Suddenly, Casey realized that she was sitting in the dark and looking at him as though she was waiting for him to come home for hours. Without saying anything, she lay back down, facing away from the door and toward Derek's bed. Derek went into the bathroom and changed into pajamas. Ten minutes later, he was in his own bed, turned away from Casey. She found herself looking at his silhouette under the covers. She also kept thinking about the girl from the bar called Michelle, and the more she stared at Derek and thought about that Michelle, the angrier she found herself becoming.

"So." She finally said curtly. "No 'Michelle's tonight?"

Derek rolled over to face her. "Shut the fuck up, Casey."

"What?" Casey said defensively.

"Casey, I'm telling you. Shut up." He sounded serious.

Casey was starting to get concerned. "You okay?" she asked tentatively.

Derek just scoffed and rolled back away from her. And so they eventually fell asleep, Casey feeling guilty and Derek seeming terrible annoyed and angry.


	5. Airplane

Casey woke up slowly. It felt so good to wake up naturally after having so many alarms rupture peaceful sleep all the time. She felt happy somehow. It was warm under the covers and she was still to asleep to notice that sudden movements still made her head reel. At that moment, the only things that existed in the world where her soft pajamas, the cheap hotel sheets, and a very distant understanding that Derek was somewhere near her and would keep her safe. Her eyes opened slowly, taking in the first sight of that day, which happened to overlook nothing more exciting than the blank wall not two inches from her face.

Suddenly, her eyes popped open as _My alarm didn't go off!_ rang through her mind. She threw off the covers and looked at the watch on her nightstand. Nine thirty. When she looked over to the other bed, she realized that Derek wasn't in it. Instead, she could hear the soft hissing of a working shower from the bathroom. Casey took her cell phone off the bedside table and opened it. There was no small icon of an alarm clock at the bottom. Either her phone botched the order, or Derek switched it off.

_Derek. _She thought as she remembered his strange behavior the night previously. As they returned to Casey, she curled her knees up next to her and hugged them. Why did he act so strangely? The first thought that occurred to her was that he was drunk, but Casey knew enough about him to know that he behaved differently when under the influence; he was a fun drunk. Casey thought about what she could say to him, or what he would say to her when he finished his shower, and a little jolt of nervousness ran through her as she thought about how awkward it would be to confront him after such a bizarre encounter.

She didn't even have to time to get her thoughts together, though, before the lock to the bathroom clicked and Derek came out in nothing but an old pair of sweatpants. When he saw that Casey was awake, he just looked at her for several minutes, as though making up his mind on what he would say, but ended up just murmuring "Hey."

"Hey." Casey said, trying to decode his behavior. For some reason, she couldn't help but think that he had a very nice six-pack, though that thought dissolved before it was even fully formed. "Did you switch my alarm off?" She continued as Derek went over to his suitcase, breaking the silence.

"Yeah." He said nonchalantly. "It's really annoying. I don't like being woken up early all summer."

"Derek, we have a plane to catch at three today and I still wanted to get some things done! How could you be that selfish?" She asked as she felt frustration over the previous night simmering away within her.

"What are you talking about?" He asked as he smoothed the wrinkles out of a plain t-shirt and sniffed it. "I did you a favor. Who doesn't like sleeping in?"

"Well, sleeping in isn't something I want to do right now! I already missed a whole day due to…what happened previously." She said indignantly, carefully avoiding the topic of her drunken night in her purple sequined dress. "Derek! You can't wear that, it's disgusting!" She said, quickly changing the subject, but the dirty t-shirt was already over his head.

"So." Derek said, ignoring his half-sister's previous remark about his wardrobe choices. "Whatcha doing today?" He asked.

Casey didn't have to think for two seconds to figure out what he was doing; he was trying to make up for being so off-handed the night before by taking an interest in her. "That's none of your business." She replied arrogantly.

"Whatever." Derek said as he walked back into the bathroom, a q-tip in his hand. "By the way," He yelled from the restroom, "I was kind of a dick last night. I did something stupid. Forget about it, okay?"

Casey didn't know whether to interpret this as an apology or not. Actually, it almost made her feel worse because he wouldn't even give her a decent admission of guilt.

"Yeah…" Was all she said, more confused than before. Natural curiosity wanted to know what kind of 'stupid' things he'd done, but she thought better of asking him.

After several minutes, Derek came out of the bathroom again. "I'm sorry." He said quietly, looking her straight in the eye. His glance melted Casey's heart, though she presumed it was out of pity. Even still, there was something searing in the connection between his light brown eyes and her bright blue ones; something explosive and powerful.

"It's okay." She replied, dumbfounded for the first time by his eyes. Derek just nodded softly and turned back to going back and forth between his luggage and the bathroom.

For several minutes, Casey just stared ahead, trying to make sense of what just happened. Finally, she shook her head and convinced herself that she was imagining things that just weren't there. Determined to not dwell on it, she got up and started rummaging through her things to find something suitable for the day.

-

They were on the airplane, quiet for the most part due to the sleeping passengers all around them, watching their separate little TV sets through headphones.

Casey sat in her seat, seemingly relaxed but endless conflict rioting in her brain. For some reason, she really wanted to start a conversation with him, and not just because suddenly she was interested in just hearing her voice, but there was something about that eye contact between them earlier that, no matter how much she tried to deny it, made her feel like opening up to him. "Derek." Casey finally said softly.

He didn't notice. His earphones must have been turned up really loud.

"Derek." Casey repeated, slightly louder, as she touched his shoulder softly.

Derek gave a small jump, and then yanked his headphones out of his ears. "Yeah?"

"You should have told the girls that came to you room at night to be quieter." Casey said in a voice only slightly louder than a whisper. As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she wished she hadn't said them. She had planned to never tell anybody about that, especially Derek, but there was something about the completely still atmosphere that made her trust him so much.

A light rosy color spread over Derek's cheeks, and Casey could have sworn it was a blush. "Sorry. I didn't know you could…"

"It's okay." Casey didn't force him to finish the sentence.

"No, I mean…I don't know. Whatever." Derek stammered. He was clearly embarrassed.

"It's all right. I should have said something before."

"So…every night you could…"

"I'm a light sleeper. I just, I mean I'll admit it, most nights I was pretty ticked off, and sometime I even found myself wondered how your dad could raise you to do that-" Casey started, then stopped herself when she realized how rude her little confession was. "Sorry." She added.

Derek just took a deep breath. "It's okay. Honestly, I think a lot of people ask themselves that. Basically, my dad gave me the generic 'talk' when I was thirteen, told me to respect women and all that, but otherwise he let me go out and party without a curfew. I even think he knew about some of those girls but he just turned the other way." He said, as though it didn't bother him at all. The atmosphere of the plane seemed to also be coaxing Derek to open up for the first time.

Casey just frowned "That sucks." She said quietly.

"Why?" Derek asked, suddenly defensive. "I did whatever I wanted all through high school. I had the experience most kids can only dream about; do what you want, when you want, however much you want, and you'll barely get any crap from your parents, or, well, parent."

"You can't be serious about doing _anything _you want though, right?" Casey asked, suddenly concerned.

"I was never a drug addict, if that's what you're asking. I stayed out of just enough trouble to keep my dad off my back. I figured out when I was still a kid just what buttons to push to make him operate how I want him to." He replied.

Casey sighed. She knew there was no way to make him see that his dad's parenting methods could have harmed him. "Do you think you'll be the same way in college?"

There was a long pause. "If I could find the right person…" He started, but seemingly lost the rest of the sentence once in the middle of it.

Casey didn't try to cajole the rest of it out of him.


	6. Paris

**All right guys, I know its loooooooong overdue, and I'm sooo sorry about it, but I hope you like this latest instalment. I will make an active effort to get the next chapter in in a more...timely fashion. Again, I'm really sorry, it's all my fault. **

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"DEREK!" Casey shouted at the top of her lungs as she smacked the bathroom door as hard as she could. "Hurry up, already!"

"In a minute!" He replied in mock cheeriness.

"You've been in there forever! UGH!" Casey shouted in frustration as she flung herself onto the French hotel bed. "Ass!"

"Language!" Derek shouted back sarcastically.

"What are you doing in there anyway? It's been twenty minutes since you got out of the shower and I need the bathroom."

"Gee, Case, a fifteen year old guy in a bathroom. What could I possibly be doing?"

Casey took a moment to comprehend what he meant. "That's sick!"

Derek just chuckled, obviously satisfied with the level of revulsion he was able to coax out of his stepsister. "Relax, would you? Jeez, somebody spent a bit too much time away from their school shrink…"

Casey gasped angrily. "That's completely unfair!"

"Prude." He muttered under his breath as he opened the door and stepped out, a broad grin on his face

And then, Casey froze. He was in a towel. Nothing but an insignificant scrap of terrycloth. Casey could see every muscle in his chest and stomach, as well as the curved shadows that outlined his hipbones and sloped toward each other, joining somewhere under the towel. His reddish-brown hair was still damp and lay messily about his face. For a moment, all Casey noticed was that Derek was in that towel, and then snapped back into reality.

"Shut up." She muttered as she went as quickly as possible into the bathroom to hide her blushing face.

-

It was Saturday night and the two teenagers were unaccompanied in Paris. Derek, true to form, was about to go out, and Casey was quite predictably sitting on her bed and reading about the museums she would visit the next day.

"You know," Derek started as he emerged from the bathroom, "if you _really _want to see Europe, you shouldn't just see it during the day. Come with me." He said, before quickly adding "we won't drink if you don't want to."

Casey wanted to give him a flat out no, but curiosity pulled at her when she thought about the beautiful photos she'd seen of Paris at night. Furthermore, the night was still young, and Derek was making her feel so spontaneous and adventurous. Besides, as much as she didn't want to admit it, for some reason the thought of spending time with Derek didn't send waves of revulsion through her, and he was right; Paris was best at night.

"Um, yeah, I guess." She mumbled. "Just give me like fifteen minutes." She went over to her suitcase.

"Okay" He responded as he dropped onto his bed and flicked on the TV.

-

The phrase _nothing to wear _never had a more appropriate application than to Casey's selection of evening wear. In fact, the only dress she brought that would have been wearable to clubbing in Paris was the purple sequined one that she previously got drunk and threw up in. She must have been through her whole suitcase three times, trying to come up with some creative combination of cardigans and denim miniskirts before finally giving up. Saying that she didn't want to go because she had nothing to wear couldn't have sounded more pathetic, but she couldn't think of anything else to say.

"Um, Derek just go without me."

Derek looked away from the TV, his brow furrowed. "Uh, I'd rather go with you. So hurry up."

"Really, Derek. If I'm that much of a prude, you'll have more fun alone." Casey didn't want to bring antagonism into her argument, but didn't know what else to say.

"What the hell is up your ass?"

Casey sighed. "Nothing. Nothing, I'm just…really jet lagged."

"It wasn't a long flight-"

"How about tomorrow night?" She interrupted.

Derek sat silent for a moment. "You know, we don't have to go to a club. We could just walk around."

Casey looked at him, shocked. For Derek to give up an opportunity to go to a party was like anyone else giving up one of their kidneys. She couldn't say she wasn't flattered, albeit slightly confused.

-

It was a gorgeous night. The sky was virtually cloudless, displaying a starkly pale crescent moon. The first place they went to was, of course, the Eiffel Tower, followed by the Notre Dame Cathedral, but Casey also found something fascinating around every corner, and, surprisingly, Derek didn't seem to mind being dragged around by her.

"Excusez-moi, pourriez-vous prendre une photo de nous?" Casey asked a passer by in halting French. The woman smiled warmly at them, almost knowingly.

"Bien sûr." She replied kindly as she took Casey's camera. The two stood in front of the beautifully illuminated Eiffel tower as the woman took several photos of them. In the first, they were standing next to each other, shoulder to shoulder. In the second, Derek's arm was around Casey's waist as she looked surprised but kept smiling. In the third picture, they were embracing each other. Casey was shocked but didn't have much time to respond, so she hugged back and allowed her cheek to be pressed onto his as they kept grinning widely.

When Casey went to get her camera back, the woman said "Paris est formidable pour les jeunes couples. Profitez de la ville" Casey smiled back and turned scarlet. Derek looked at her curiously.

"What did she say?" He asked as soon as she was out of earshot.

"Uh, nothing. She just said 'you're welcome'."

"Case, I might not have taken French but I'm no idiot. Tell me. What did she say."

Casey sighed. "She said…that Paris is a wonderful place for young couples…or something of the sort." She mumbled.

Derek stayed quiet for a moment, though there was a small smile on his face. "So…she thought we were a couple."

"Well, yeah, I guess. She probably had bad vision or something."

"Are you kidding she was like thirty five. Besides, I could see why somebody would say that." He said tentatively, then quickly added, "Hey, do you mind if we sit down, we were walking around forever."

"Sure." Casey said as they walked over to the bench he was indicating. "And _I _don't see why _anyone _would think we were together, even if they were blind."

"Well, we're the same age and we look nothing alike…"

Casey had nothing with which to respond to that.

-

"Hey, you have goosebumps." Derek noticed a few moments later. He ran his hand over her arm, which just seemed to make the tiny hairs stand up further on end. Derek smirked. "You want my sweatshirt?"

Casey exhaled sharply and looked at him. "Sure." She said in a small voice. Since when did she act shy around him?

His sweatshirt was soft and warm inside and smelled faintly of his cologne. Casey wanted to wrap herself up in it and go to sleep. Why, she still had no idea.

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**Thanks for reading! By the way, I know it was way late and a bit short, but by all means dont let that stop you from reveiwing...!**

**Peace.**


	7. A Rapid Spiral

**Ok, guys, two announcements:**

**1. Sorry for saying that Derek was fifteen in the last chapter. That's my bad and I take it back. He's eighteen, so is Casey. **

**2. This is the chapter that explains why I gave this chapter the rating M. So, yeah, I guess exercise caution. Happy reading please leave me reveiws!**

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_It´s too short. _Casey thought decisively while examining her backside in the full-length mirror near the dressing room of the small boutique. _And too expensive. _She added. She was right; the tiny silk slip-dress was more of a negligee than a real dress; it barely covered the tops of her thighs and seemed especially flimsy due to the pin-thin spaghetti straps that held it up.

"Oh mon Dieu! C'est magnifique de vous. Devrais-je l'emballer?" The store's worker intruded on Casey's self-examination. Casey took a second to take in the rapid French and break it down into understandable bite-sized pieces.

"Uh…J'ai besoin d'un moment. Just a sec."

The clerk was right, the dress did look quite exquisite on her. It skimmed over all her curves and accentuated her strong dancer's legs. With a pair of heels, she would be a knock out. But then again, did she really want to knock the female sex back two hundred years by displaying her body like candy in a store window? But oh, the way the blue silk made her eyes pop and displayed her breasts just right…

_I'll buy a nice cardigan to wear over it. There. That should make it suitable._

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The club was even more densely packed than the one in Madrid was. Shortly after arriving, Casey lost Derek to the adrenaline-filled crowd and went up to the bar. However, she quickly figured out that just sitting at a bar wasn't any fun. Tentatively, she'd approached the crowd and nuzzled her way in. After a few moments, she started making small bounces to the music, and after a few more songs she'd become a part of the crowd, swaying along with it, physically and emotionally, losing all inhibitions as her hips gyrated. Now, the techno music vibrated through Casey to the core, making it harder to dance to. Hundreds of sweating bodies pressed tightly against her. All she could smell was different fragrances, deodorants, and the slightly sour undertone of a thin film of sweat. Naturally, the idea of wearing a cardigan was abandoned long ago. For the most part, Casey was dancing alone (though when so many people were so close to her, it was hard to tell if she had a partner or not). At first, the feel of the crowd was a bit overwhelming to her, like being trapped in the middle of a stormy ocean, but soon she found herself moving along with its ripples and waves. Derek was nowhere to be seen and she knew it would be pointless to try to find him in such a dense crowd, but Casey was having fun anyway. For all the times she scorned the idea of going clubbing, she had to admit she was enjoying herself. Sure, there was some questionable behavior going on in some of the darker corners, but for the most part it was just young people with excesses of energy in need of an outlet.

It felt like around half an hour, though maybe more, before she was so exhausted that she couldn't postpone clambering up to the bar. Casey ordered a ginger ale and was about halfway through it when there was a tap at her shoulder.

"You know, there's really no point in coming here if you don't drink something." Derek's voice yelled into her ear over the music.

"No! I'm not drinking. Ever again."

Derek took the seat next to her and ordered two shots of vodka.

"I just told you, I'm not drinking!"

"Aw, come on! Live a little! Besides, I'm already paying for 'em!"

Casey looked at the shot of clear liquid as though it could come alive and murder her at any moment. "No thanks."

Derek just shrugged and gulped down the burning liquor. Casey looked from her brother to the shot glass, then back to him. The next thing she knew, her eyes were watering and her throat was burning. And she liked it.

"Give me another of those."

Two shots later, Casey got up to dance again.

"Hey! What'd you say if I join you?" She heard faintly from behind her, the music swallowing up most of Derek's words.

She turned around. She didn't know if it was the drink or the cavalier atmosphere, but he looked good, and all she felt was _why the hell not?_

-

Their dancing was innocent at first, face to face, holding each others' hands as they moved casually. It was during a particularly fast song that somebody shoved Casey into her brother and they started dancing closer. The song faded. Another came and faded. When the intro into the third song came on, Casey lost herself to the music and spun around, allowing her backside to rub against Derek, though lightly of course. The song faded out.

"I'm ready to go." Derek whispered into Casey's ear. For some reason, Casey couldn't think of a good reason to stay, either.

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There was an excitement in the air of the cab on their way home, though neither of them showed it and barely even talked to each other, staring out of their respective windows. When they got back to the hotel, however, the excitement dissipated and a deep calm, almost to the point of boredom, permeated the air. It was strange, but suddenly Casey felt as though she was surrounded by weariness, though she wasn't particularly tired. The club gave her a huge energy rush that she felt empty without. Plus, she was starting to feel guilty for dancing with her brother…

Now, the television was playing something in rapid French that neither could fully understand.

Finally, Derek sighed. "I'm bored. He rolled over on his bed."

Casey just made a "hmm…" noise in response, staring with dull eyes at the screen.

"Wanna go walk around?"

"No." Laziness was weighing her down to the bed like magnetism.

Several moments passed with nothing but the French woman on TV babbling away in her native tongue interrupting the silence.

"Do you have anything to do?" Derek whined.

"No."

Seemingly unsatisfied with the response, however, Derek jumped off the bed and went over to her suitcase.

"Derek, get away from my stuff!" Casey sprang into action, all traces of laziness vanished.

"Hey! Cards! Can we play cards?!" Derek pulled the small black box of playing cards out of a side pocket of Casey's suitcase.

"If you wanted to play cards so badly, they probably have some in the mini-fridge or something. Why'd you go through my stuff?"

Derek ignored her question. "Why would there be cards in a fridge?" He opened the package and took the fresh, gleaming cards out. "Wanna play Go Fish?"

Casey was still irritated of what she considered to be a serious breach of her privacy. "Not really."

"Come on! I never took French, I have no idea what this bitch is saying!" Derek gestured to the television. "Please?" He added in a whiney tone, "I want to play Go Fish."

Casey sighed. Truth be told, she didn't know what was going on on the TV either. "Fine."

-

Three rounds of Go Fish later, Casey was dying of boredom yet again. "I'm tired of this." She threw her cards down onto her bed.

"That dress looks nice on you." Derek mumbled distractedly in response without taking his eyes off the cards in his hand.

Casey's head shot up. She was really flattered. "Thanks." She said softly, a blush spreading over her cheeks.

"Yup." Derek jumped off the bed and went over to the bathroom.

Several minutes later, he came back out. And their eyes met. They were looking at each other curiously, questioningly, frozen. Derek took a step toward Casey. Casey's lips parted slightly and she was unable to stop looking at him. Another step. He seemed to be moving in slow motion.

In the back of her mind, Casey kept thinking _I shouldn't have drank that much, I shouldn't have drank that much…_

Another step. He sat down next to her and they seemed to be suspended in midair, staring at each other.

_This is so weird. Am I drunk or is he moving really slow? This is creepy, I should turn on the TV. I should look away. Shit, why can't I look away?!_

Derek leaned closer and closer, until their lips met. And that's when time seemed to speed back up and revert back to how it should have been. _Everything_ seemed as though it was how it should have been. It was by far the best kiss of Casey's life; soft, but with tons of passion under the surface. It unraveled their past and unlocked their future. Derek's warm, moist lips seemed to fit so perfectly into hers as he reached his hand up to comb it through her soft hair. She put one hand on his cheek and the other on the nape of his neck. His smooth tongue ran over the surface of her full lips and they parted for him, their tongues playing with each other in their mouths. Casey felt like a huge weight was being taken off her shoulders. She felt like she was flying. She couldn't believe that this beautiful man was actually kissing _her_, touching _her _hair, pushing his tongue into _her _mouth. It was surreal, in a way, because despite the dizzying effect of the amazing kiss, she knew it was her own stepbrother, the one who made her life hell for so long. He loved her. Out of all the girls that came to his room late at night, he loved _her. _It was wrong and right at the same time. She couldn't stop, knew she wouldn't be able to even if she tried. She'd fallen off the edge, into an out of control yet completely amazing spiral. Casey stopped caring about her final semester grades arriving, or writing postcards, or anything. All she cared about was that beautiful, elevated moment in time, one that she would never ever let go. Derek wound the hand that wasn't in her hair around her waist, pulling her close. Her breasts and stomach were pushed right up against his hard chest and perfect six-pack. He didn't play varsity hockey so much just for the fun in it, after all. As her hand slipped from his cheek up through his hair, he deepened the kiss, pushing her further onto him. She adjusted her position so that she was straddling him. It felt so right and such a natural progression of things that the sexuality of it only struck Casey after she felt something hard between his legs rub against her crotch. Suddenly, she heard a moan from somewhere and it took her a moment to recognize it was her own voice. She'd never had so little control over her own actions. When she heard it escape her, she blushed and pulled back, her eyes wide. Nobody had ever elicited anything so passionate out of her.

Derek just chuckled. "It's ok." He said as he pulled her back to him. Casey's heart felt like butter. It was the first time Derek didn't do something to make her feel worse when she felt embarrassed. She never felt so free from inhibitions. The kiss progressed, Casey's hands in Derek's hair, pulling him close, and Derek's hands sliding up from her waist to her breasts. When he squeezed them lightly in those strong hands, Casey didn't know what to act on; the this-isn't-right feeling in her mind, or the growing ache between her legs. Eventually, her arousal won and she pressed her lips even harder to his.

"Derek," She breathed his name out loud. She opened her mouth to keep talking but no words came. However, he didn't seem to be waiting for anything else. Instead, he pressed her lips back to his and squeezed her breasts again.

"You're gorgeous." He growled into her mouth as he bit down on her bottom lip slightly.

Casey moaned again. The hard thing trapped in Derek's pants was growing, begging for attention. Casey could feel it against her own body. Derek caught her bottom lip between his own and sucked on it lightly as Casey pressed her body so hard onto his she thought it perfectly possible that they would melt into each other. His hands went from her front to her lower back, then lower. When Casey felt a sharp squeeze on her backside, her body jerked forward and down, their crotches colliding. Derek moaned into Casey's mouth at the pressure, and Casey wanted nothing more than to make him do that again. She pressed into the hard spot again, this time eliciting an "Oh, God."

By that point, Derek couldn't wait anymore. His skillful hands worked from her backside up her sides, making sure to touch as much as much of her as possible on his way to the hem of her tiny slip-dress. His fingers curled over the bottom edge its edge and pulled up gently. Casey shivered as first her stomach, then her bra-clad breasts, then her shoulders were exposed to the open air – and Derek's hungry eyes. She blushed as he leaned back to examine his new discovery.

"Take that thing off." He growled, his voice full of passion, while nodding in the direction of her chest. Casey's blush deepened but she reached behind herself with hands shaking from excitement and nervousness. Her fingers found the clasp on her smooth, strapless bra and, after fumbling with it for a little bit, undid it. Derek watched as the whole article of clothing relaxed and fell off of her, her breasts free from their restraints. Casey's c-cup breasts were firm and pale, the very representations of innocent youth. He took one in each hand and started playing with them. Casey lost any control she had left – her hips now crashed wildly against Derek's, trying to get some sort of relief. She gave a long, passion filled moan.

"Oh God, Derek!" She exclaimed as she started fumbling with the buttons on his shirt. Her hands started shaking again and her breathing was ragged. She couldn't wait, it was absolutely vital, for her to feel Derek's chest that very moment. She grabbed the thing at the collar, pulling it apart violently, sending the buttons flying. Derek looked around at the scattered buttons, amazed. Casey didn't have time to wonder how she came across that kind of strength, though, and started running her hands over any inch of Derek's toned chest and muscular abs she could find. Her arms wrapped around him and she kissed him again. It was wilder now, sloppier, without pattern or tenderness. They acted as though they wanted to swallow each other as their hands explored each other's naked backs.

After several minutes, Casey couldn't take the anticipation anymore. "Derek, I need," She started, but the rest of the sentence was lost in an animalistic moan.

"What?" He groaned into her mouth.

"You." She groaned back.

"Oh, shit." Derek growled. He thought his dick might explode. He took her by the shoulders and pushed her down onto her back as gently as he could in his excited state. He quickly undid the zipper at the side of her skirt and pushed it down, leaving her panties on. Casey was getting scared. She couldn't believe what she'd just basically asked Derek to do. She always thought that if she lost her virginity before marriage, she would have thought about it thoroughly first, to be absolutely sure. She always thought that nobody would be able to keep her from thinking straight, from stopping if she wasn't absolutely sure, but Derek was having such a powerful effect on her, like a drug. She knew it was right, she _felt _it, but she'd never done anything because it felt right, but because she'd thought it through. She was really, truly, about to trust somebody, without any guarantees. It scared the shit out of her but the thrill was indescribable.

She undid the button on his pants and slid them down. They were left in nothing but underwear, Derek's hard, heavy body draped over her like a protective blanket. She felt terribly exposed, yet safer than ever before. She was exhilarated.

"You sure?" Derek asked tenderly, his lips just millimeters from her mouth, his eyes fixed on hers. Casey's heart melted in her chest. She nodded meekly yet assuredly. With that, Derek took off Casey's underwear and his own boxers. Casey's breathing quickened considerably as she felt the emotional connection between them that can only come from absolutely no physical barriers.

"Don't worry." Derek mumbled into her ear reassuringly as he nuzzled his face into her warm neck. His words calmed her down much more than she would have imagined. She braced herself as Derek positioned himself and kissed her. She kissed back tentatively, her lips shaking. There was nervousness, of course, but Casey trusted Derek to do anything in his power to make it painless. He pushed in the tiniest bit and Casey gasped. He kept kissing her, but she didn't kiss back. He reached up and took one of her breasts in his hand as he lightly pushed a little more. Casey gasped, pleasure and pain mixing within her. Derek's lips traveled to a sensitive spot on her neck. He kept kissing her as he pushed in more. All Casey could feel was a terrible sharp sting and the wet kisses on her neck. The pain grew steadily, Casey biting her bottom lip to keep from crying out, before finally she noticed it calming slightly. She could feel his hips against hers and knew the worst was behind her. Derek kissed her lips again. This time she responded slightly with trembling lips. He pulled out almost all the way, bringing the stinging sensation back for the tiniest bit of time, before going back in. Casey's heart was still racing from the pain but she was calming down. After several minutes, when she was considerably less ruffled, she started to feel the rhythm of Derek's thrusts and hear his heavy breathing. She didn't feel much of anything at that point. If she were to be completely honest with herself, she would have to say that it felt slightly invasive and it wasn't entirely comfortable. Derek's lips were moving from one side of her neck to the other, stopping occasionally at her lips or cleavage, but the thrusts kept up the same beat. She felt hot. The situation was full of passion to the point that she felt feverish. There wasn't much pleasure at that point, but the fervor and love were still almost tangible.

It was about fifteen minutes later that Derek's strokes started getting harder. It didn't hurt, but she somehow _felt _it. Derek propped himself up on one elbow and with his free hand he reached down. Almost instantly, Casey felt the effects of Derek's touches. They were little circles targeted at her most sensitive area, and Casey responded immediately. First came the tiny gasps that escaped her with each exhale, then the longer, drawn out, loving moans, and finally she cried out Derek's name as loudly as she could. Then the world shattered. It was like she was falling down a black vortex, full of mystery and intrigue. She felt like she lost everything she had to hold onto, but in the best way possible; she was lost, and floating, her head empty. She'd never felt so loved, or beautiful, or fragile, or strong. She shut her eyes and a single sigh skipped out of her mouth as she was tossed up into the air and floated back down like a feather. When she finally came back into consciousness, she was shaking and felt groggy but fuzzy and happy on the inside. She felt something warm envelope her insides, then Derek's lips pressed against hers as he rolled over onto the bed. After that, Casey fell into a deep, peaceful sleep.

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**All right, you got to the end. Congrats, welcome to the winners' circle. And now, I feel that it is only right for you to...you guessed it...reveiw. **

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**Thanks so much for reading it means a lot!**


	8. QUICK NOTE ABOUT THE STORY

**Guys, I'm an idiot. I know I made it seem like that's the end of the story, but it isn't. I'm so sorry, I'm really stupid for phrasing the author's note at the end of the last chapter that way, I didn't realize how it actually sounded, THE STORY IS NOT OVER, don't stop reading it!**

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**PS: sorry to anyone that thought this was an update; I hope to have that up in a few days **


	9. Morning After: Fight and Flight

**Again, I'm sorry about the confusion from before. Here's the next installment. Here's the thing though: my apologies, but it's one of the shorter chapters. The next one should compensate for it, though.**

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Warmth. There was something warm near her. That was the first thing Casey registered as her mind began detaching from deep sleep. What was so warm? And soft? She sighed in her sleep and rolled over, facing the warmth. Then her eyes opened a sliver. Instead of white sheets and cream-colored walls she was expecting, there was a blur of peach before her. Surprised, her eyes popped open. Derek's face was not one foot away from hers. And that's when all the memories from the previous night came back to her; the feel of his fingers on her skin, long moans that buttered up the air, a thin film of sweat over firm skin…

The realization made Casey jump back and out of the bed in shock. When her feet were planted on the ground, she remembered she was naked. Naked. And Derek was in the same bed, and he'd…well, he'd touched…_oh God!_ Her breathing was shaky as she looked around the room as though seeing it for the first time. What to do? Where to go? What to do? She stared into Derek's face. It seemed so different now, somehow more mature.

The panic set in. She didn't know where to go, but all she knew was she didn't want to be there when Derek woke up. She didn't want the awkward conversation – or worse, the awkward silence – or to be told how he'd made a mistake.

_Shit shit shit. _She crept into the bathroom and took the quickest shower of her life. She was scared of Derek's reaction, yes, but she didn't feel dirty. Irrational thoughts swam through her mind as the hot water rushed over her body. _Maybe I could somehow dress him up and put him in his bed and make him think he'd dreamed it…maybe I could empty all the bottles in the mini-fridge and make him think we were piss drunk. But then again, no hangover. Shit. _

Casey practically jumped into the first shirt and skirt she found, grabbed her purse and left the room. She started walking around the Parisian streets, trying to get her head to stop spinning. She couldn't run from him forever; they had a train to catch at two.

Stupid moments from the previous night kept running through her mind like a broken record. _Rapid pants, slow moans, touching, touching, touching, her bra…_She quickened her pace as though trying to leave the memories behind her. She'd gotten about a quarter mile away from the hotel when the turmoil within her started to quiet down and she realized she was slightly sore and the walking wasn't helping matters. She dropped onto a bench. Her head was whirling and she was almost sure it had nothing to do with the vodka. She held her head in her hands. She wanted to go back to Spain, where things were normal, and run from Derek forever there. She could give herself a new name, like Maria, learn fluent Spanish, and open a little Café near a beach…Oddly enough, the main reason she knew that was impossible was that she'd already chosen her college back home.

Casey started trembling slightly but didn't feel like crying; she was shocked, but not upset. Passer bys looked at her strangely, as though pondering whether or not to offer her help. Did she look that distraught?

Finally, Casey clenched all her muscles to stop the shaking and got up. She did the most logical thing she could think of doing at that moment; drinking coffee. Then she took her phone out of her bag and typed in the message:

_Please bring my things to train station._

Even saying something so void of emotion to Derek made Casey cringe slightly, but she sent the message anyway. There, now she wouldn't have to worry about going back to the room. On the train she could figure out what to do to avoid her stepbrother.

Then, suddenly, her phone rang obnoxiously. Casey winced when she saw 'New Message: Derek' flashing on the screen, but opened it anyway.

_Where r u?!_

Casey didn't want to answer, so, in an act of extreme immaturity, she shut her phone off.

_"Oh, God, Derek!" No, no, not again. _Casey drowned the ghost of a memory in a huge gulp of coffee. She sighed. For such an intelligent girl, she really had no brains sometimes.

-

The train station was crowded, thank God. Exclamations and shouts mingled with the hum of excited chatter that surrounded Casey. She was anxiously trying to keep out of sight. She hoped that Derek wouldn't approach her if he saw her, but couldn't be sure. Casey went through security and was finally on the platform, waiting to board. And, of course, there he was, two suitcases at his feet, looking around anxiously, standing on tiptoe to try to look out over the crowd. No luck. Casey ducked down before he saw her. She suddenly felt guilty, like a child that ran away from home. Tentatively, she reached into her bag.

_Don't worry. I'm going to board the train. Please don't look for me._

Casey watched as Derek jumped at the sudden ringing coming from his pants, then his face softened into relief as his eyes scanned the screen. He didn't stop looking around, but at least he didn't look as worried.

-

The first half of the train ride was relatively uneventful; Casey read some pamphlets without paying much attention to them while sitting in somebody else's seat; she managed to trade places with a middle aged man that seemed to understand her problem after getting a good look at Derek. It was about halfway through the trip, though, that a knock came at Casey's compartment door.

Casey took a deep breath and slid it open. Derek's eyes looked wounded.

"Hey." He said softly.

Casey just looked at him with an expressionless face.

"We need to talk." He went on gently.

"I'm not ready to talk."

Derek's voice hardened slightly. "Too bad."

Casey gave him an evil look and shut the door. Why the sudden hostility, she had no idea, probably a self-defense mechanism of sorts. At least he didn't come near her again until after arriving in London.

-

_u cant avoid me forever._

_-_

_Did you get my stuff to the room?_

_-_

_-_

_Yes. When r u gonna get here?_

_-_

_Soon. I'm sorry._

_-_

_Please get here soon. We need to talk._

_-_

_-_

_-_

**Don't you love reading something by an author that won't update for two months straight and then suddenly, BAM, the block is gone and I can just crank the chapters out?**

**Ok, I'm not going to beg this time, but I will ask nicely to leave me reveiws. It's only polite, and I would love to know any reasons you think it sucks (no sarcasm - I like constructive critisism, even if I don't always listen)**


	10. Confrontation

**I deserve to be burned at the stake for taking so long with this update.**

**-**

**-**

**-**

Casey felt the grain of the wood on the thick, polished, hotel door. Her fingertips rested on the brass doorknob. She'd been standing that way for at least ten minutes, knowing she'd have to go in sometime.

Images of her previous melodramatic escape kept playing through her head and she blushed at her own foolishness. She was always the adult, the responsible one in the family, and here she was running away like a little child. Hell, she still running away, scared. But what was she supposed to do? She and her stepbrother had…well they'd…she didn't even want to think about it, mostly because she didn't know how to feel about it. Part of her wanted to be revolted by Derek's touch, yet still part of her craved it. It was a sickening, confusing feeling that she simply couldn't shake off. Innocent moments would flash through her mind, images of his hand tapping her on the shoulder, or his fingertips on the goosebumps on her arm. Then she shriveled at the thought of housekeeping back in that French hotel finding stains on their old sheets – blood, or anything else.

For the first time in Casey's life, her head wasn't on straight.

Then suddenly, she jumped back as she heard the tumblers on the other side of the door shift and the knob jerk back as Derek opened the door, a few pounds in his hands.

He jumped back at the sight of her as well.

"Casey," he said dumbly.

"Hey," she responded softly.

"Uh, come in." He held the door open for her and followed her into the room, as though she was an unexpected visitor and not a roommate.

Casey sat down on a bed and watched as Derek walked over to the dresser. She felt like a guest, a stranger. The bed didn't feel like something she would be sleeping on. It had a feeling similar to being in a sickroom or a funeral home.

"Here." He tossed her a key to the room.

"Thanks."

"I'm going to get a soda. You want anything?"

Casey frowned. She hated avoiding the subject.

"No, thanks. Can't you go later?" Casey asked, noticing how unhappy Derek looked at having to stay with her. She couldn't exactly blame Derek; he was well known as the guy who was good at getting girls in bed but terrible at the conversations that followed.

He sat down across from her. "So…?"

"We need to talk." The words felt heavy on Casey's tongue. She could feel the silence in the room and smell the acute, generic scent of hotel.

"Yeah."

"Derek…what happened?" was all she could manage. It was difficult to look at him, but she did it anyway, while Derek looked out the window.

"I don't even know."

Suddenly Casey felt a flush of anger. "How do you not know?"

Derek shrugged. "I mean, we had sex. It's natural."

Casey gaped at him for a moment. How could he flat-out say that which she couldn't even formulate in her mind? The words seemed to hover above her dangerously, like bricks suspended by string.

"Derek, what do you mean it's natural? Se…well, _that_, it's natural for people that are in love, not-"

Derek threw himself down onto his bed, bored. "Casey, can you please cut the Virgin Mary crap about _love_?" He said the last word as though it was something completely imaginary, something he could pretend to pluck right out of the air and have it be real.

"It's not crap Derek! I don't understand where you…shit. I can't believe I did this." Casey looked out over Derek's body, staring despondently at the wall behind him.

Derek sat up in his bed. He hated having a drama queen for a sister. "Casey, it's just sex."

"There is no such thing as 'just sex'"

"Oh my God. Casey, get a fucking grip. We're not in biblical times and you don't have to be this bullshit angel you want to be so much."

Derek's anger was reaching a fever pitch, and Casey could sense this, but still she couldn't help but blurt out what she said next. "God, did your dad damage you so much that you really think that what we did is nothing?" Her voice was getting thick and her eyes prickled with tears. "It's _special_ to me, Derek. I know that nobody has ever been special for you, but why do you have to ruin everything for me?"

"Why is everything my fucking fault?" Derek exploded, "What the hell did I 'ruin,' Casey? You can deny it all you want, you can make it into something wrong and ugly, but I know that you liked it!" he stopped to catch his breath. "And where the fuck do you get off saying that nobody was ever special to me? We may have lived together for a few years, but you still don't know shit about me!"

"You wanna know how I know? Because you are fucked up, Derek! Okay? You are _fucked up_! And you wanna know something else-"

"Fuck off, Casey!"

The insult hit her like a splash of cold water, and the next thing Casey knew, the door had slammed after him.

She sat alone for a minute, taking deep breaths, trying to rationalize. She tried to convince herself that he would be back, that they would forgive each other, but she couldn't calm herself down. Her face felt hot with shame and anger and her hands were shaking and her body had no way to expend the emotion other than with tears.

At first, Casey tried to stifle her silent crying, but when she found she couldn't, when she really lost all control, heavy sobs wracked her body.

-

Ten minutes passed, and Casey's emotions were starting to settle down. As her crying quieted, the silence of the room started to press in on her. Part of her expected Derek to burst through the door at any moment. Despite how she may have felt, he wanted him to come through the door, and apologize, and accept her apology, and kiss her the way he did the other night, and just hold her, to keep her from breaking into pieces. Another part of her didn't have time for Derek anymore, because she was too tired for him. As crying often does to people, Casey was exhausted. Her cell phone read seven o'clock, but she needed sleep.

She turned on the television. Not to watch, but to act as background noise; the silence in the room was starting to build into a physical pressure, like trying to squeeze through a tiny rubber tube.

With some British commercial humming in the background, Casey slipped into her pajamas and turned off all the lights. She crawled under her cool covers and finally turned off the TV.

-

Derek's touch was so warm, and soft. It felt like butter was gliding over her chest, her shoulders, her back. She was naked, gloriously naked, and unashamed of it. She was acutely aware of where every one of his fingers lay, because in a sense they were her fingers, too.

His fingers roamed over her breasts and sloped over her shoulders, where he started squeezing one of them urgently, nudging and shaking her.

"Casey, Casey…"

"What?"

She opened her eyes and it was dark, and it took Casey a minute to realize that she had been asleep. The rest had relaxed her, and now she didn't care that Derek was sitting next to her and waking her up. She sat up.

"Derek, what's going on?" She squinted at him in the semi-darkness and could tell that he was excited, maybe even a little nervous.

Derek looked at her. His gaze was searching, and pleading, and even a little lustful, all at once. The intensity of his stare almost scared Casey. Her heart rate quickened in her chest. She was suddenly very aware of his breath on her bottom lip.

And then he kissed her chastely. Casey didn't care how mad she was at him; the contact was incredible.

"I think I get it," he murmured as they broke apart, still focusing in on her eyes, "Casey, I think I get it." He smiled broadly.

Casey smiled back. She was still a little groggy, but felt warm inside. It was a different kind of warmth than that of liquor though. It was the sort of warmth that came not from her throat, but from her very being.

"Good," she whispered as they kissed again quickly.

Derek then got off her bed. In the few minutes before Casey fell back asleep, she could hear some rustling as Derek changed.

She felt safe. She felt warm. And, though Derek probably wouldn't admit it for a long time, she felt loved.

-

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-

**I hereby announce a new review policy:**

**You may only write reviews to this story if you have done/felt any of the following:**

**a) read it**

**b) liked it**

**c) loved it**

**d) thought it was ok**

**e) hated it**

**f) thought anything else whatsoever about it**


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